Fire-alarm signaling device



w. I. ROY AND J. B. DANEL.

FIRE ALARM SIGNALING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 11. 1919.

1,337,161, Patented Apr. 13,1920.

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distant point and thereb STATES PATENT orrron.

WILLIAM JOSEPH BOY AIN'D JOSEPH BERNARD DAN'EL, 0F SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

FIRE-ALARM SIGNALING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1920.

Application filed March 11, 1919. Serial No. 282,032.

To all whom it ma concern:

Be it known t at we, WILLIAM JOSEPH ROY and JOSEPH BERNARD DANEL,citizens of the United States, and residents of the city of Seattle,county of King and State of Washington, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Fire-Alarm Signaling Devices, of which thefollowing is a specification.

Our invention relates to signal devices intended for giving warning ofthe presence of fire or of any other sudden rise in temperature whichmight be dangerous as a means for causing fire.

The object of our device is to provide a mechanism which may beinstalled wherever desired and which is capable of being acted uponbyysudden increase in temperature, to thereby act upon an alarm locatedat some y give warning of this dangerous condition.

Our invention consists of certain apparatus employing an. air chamber orchambers located at the point or points which it is desired to protect,such chambers being provided with means whereby the expansion of the aircontained in the chamber, by reason of heat absorbed from thesurroundingair, will cause an increase in the pressure within this chamber and thusoperate a make-and-break mechanism in an electric circuit, to therebyoperate a warning mechanism located at a distant point.

The features of our invention, which we deem to be new and upon which wedesire patent, will be herein described and then defined by the claims,it being understood that the description and the illustration of themechanism given in the drawings are intended not to limit us to theexact construction shown, but to properly disclose the principles of ourinvention and the manner of carrying them out, it being understood thatequivalent constructions may be substituted for those herein describedand illustrated.

Figure 1 is a side view of one of our pneu- 'matic cylinders and thethermostatic makeand-break mechanism which is controlled thereby.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section through the air cylinder and themake-and-break mechanism. i

Fig. 4 is an end view on a larger scale effective portion of this areamay be varied 4 in amount. The idea of this opening is to provide a ventopening of quite limited and controllable area which is at all timesopen so that air may flow through the same between the interior and theexterior of this chamber 1. The purpose of this will be stated later.Connected with this air reservoir 1, is a tube 2 which extendsdownwardly and is bent so as to have an arm 20 extending upwardly, thusforming a liquid trap or seal. This arm 20 is preferably terminated by asection 21 of a glass tube. There are two reasons for employing theglass: one, because of its transparency and the ability to see the levelof the mercury, 22, contained therein; the other .is its insulatingcapacity,

whereby the contact wire 3 will not close the circuit by contacting withthe side of the tube 21. 7 I

in the'bend 22 of the combined tube 2 and 21 is placed a certain amountof mercury, or other suitable conductive liquid. Une branch of this isfreely exposed to the pressure of the air in the cylinder 1 and theother to the pressure of the exterior air. The rod or wire 3 has itslower end close ,to the surface of the mercury 22. So long as thepressures within and without the cylinder 1 are alike, or very nearlyalike, the electric current is broken. One wire 4 of the electriccircuit is connected in any suitable way with the wire 3 and the otherWire 40 of this circuit is connected in any suitable way with the tube2. As shown, the wire I 40 is connected with the cylinder 1 and this.

of course, is in direct electrical contact with the tube 2.

At one end .of the cylinder 1 its head 11 is provided with a vent orequalizing opening 10, which opening is quite small in area. The bolt 5has a conical point which corresponds with and seats against the conicalsurface of the enlarged outer end of the hole 10. The hole 1.0 isconnected, by means of a port 12, with the exterior air, said port itsinner conical end upon the corresponding surfaces of the hole 10. If,however, the bolt 5 be turned back slightly, an opening will be providedthrough which the air may pass in either direction, depending uponwhether the pressure within or without the cylinder is the greater.

This vent is supposed to be open at all times. The size of the openingand its ability to pass the air will vary according to the adjustment ofthe bolt 5. Under the conditions described, if the cylinder 1 besuddenly heated, as would occur by the development of a fire or by anyother means which would produce a sudden rise of temperature, therelieving capacity of the ports 10 and 12 will not be sufiicient tocarry the air which would seek to escape from the cylinder 1. The airwithin this cylinder when heated would expand and would produce a higherpressure within the cylinder than without, unless this were in some wayrelieved.-

By providing a vent opening of graduated and small area, changes oftemperature which occur slowly would not cause a sulficient rise inpressure to actuate the alarm mechanism, as time would be given to per-'mit gradual escape of air. In consequence, such changes of temperatureas would be produced by normal heating apparatus or by reason ofatmospheric or weather variations, would occur at too slow a rate tohave any effect to actuate the alarm mechanism, while sudden rises intemperature would produce an expansion of air in the cylinder 1 suchthat the vent would not be capable of maintaining equilibrium betweenthe external and internal pressures. In consequence, the distant alarmsignal, which in the drawings is represented bv.an electric bell 6,would be actuated. This electric alarm mechanism may be of any typewhich is found suitable or desired. WVe have shown conventionally abattery 60 as a source of electro-motive force, by which the alarmsignal is operated.

We have shown as combined with the above mechanism, another mechanismwhich operates on the valve body by employing a fusible member which isruptured by the heat generated by a'fire, this serving as an additionalprotection in case of actual fire. We do not wish it understood,however, that this mechanism is essential for the operation of thepneumatically controlled mechanism described under ordinary conditions,but that it is used combined with it for extra precautions. Thismechanism consists of the following parts:

A disk 7 is secured to the head of the bolt 5. To this disk is connecteda spring 71 in such manner as to act upon said disk to turn it and thebolt with which it is connected, so as to close the valve. Mounted uponthe same bolt, but loosely thereon, is a disk 8 which is provided withratchet or saw teeth about its periphery. Lever 9 is pivotally mountedin a fixed position, as by a pin 90, upon the head 11 of the airreservoir. A tooth or sharpened end 91, at one end of the lever 9, fitsbetween the teeth upon the disk 8 and will prevent the disk turning solong as it is held in the position shown in Fig. 4. This lever is heldin this position by means of a small wire or link 92, which is made ofan easily fusible material, so that in case the temperature rises abovea certain point. this will soften or melt and thus release the lever 9and thus permit free turningof the disk 8.

Means are provided whereby the spring 71 may be secured in adjustedposition to the disk 7 and also whereby the two disks 7 and 8 may besecured in adjusted relative positions. This means, as herein shown,consists of a series of holes 70, formed in the disk 7 and a pin 72 towhich one end of the spring 71 is secured, which pin is adapted to passthrough one of the holes in the disk 7 and to enter the disk 8, to thuslock the two disks together. This permits adjustment of the bolt as maybe desired and secures the spring thereto so as to correspond. So longas the link 92 remains intact, the spring 71 has no effect in the way ofturning of the bolt. If, however, the link 92 becomes ruptured, thespring will immediately turn the bolt. Ordinarily a small portion of arevolution of this bolt will be sufiicient to seat the inner coned endof the bolt and thus to close the discharge port 12. When this happens,the escape of air is prevented and any further rise in temperature willbe sure to cause the thermostatic device to close the circuit.

The contact bar or terminal 3 we have shown as secured to a bolt 30which is adjustable in its supporting bracket 31, whereby the distancewhich normally separates this terminal 3 from the other terminal, thelatter consisting of the mercury, 22, may be adjusted and in this waythe rise in pressure required to close the circuit may be controlled. Itis believed that the operation of the device may be clearly seen fromthe descriptionwhich has been given and that further recitation of theoperation of the mechanism is unnecessary.

What we claim as our invention is:

1. In a fire alarm apparatus, a pneumatically operated circuit closingdevice placed in said circuit, an air reservoir connected with saidcircuit closing device to close the latter by an increase of pressure,said air reservoir having a pressure equalizing vent, a valvecontrolling saigl vent, and a locking means for said valvecontaining afusible member normally operating to maintain the valve open.

2. In a fire alarm apparatus, a pneumatically operated circuit closingdevice placed in said circuit, an air reservoir connected with saidcircuit closing device to close the latter by an increase of pressure,said air reservoir having a pressure equalizing vent, a valvecontrolling said vent, a spring acting to close said valve, means foradjusting the point of connection of the spring with the valve toconform to adjustment of the valve, a locking means for said valvecontaining a fusible element, and means for adjustably connecting saidlocking means with the valve and its operating mechanism.

3. In a device of the character described, a rotatively adjusted ventingvalve, a toothed disk secured to turn therewith, a locking pawl engagingsaid disk, a fusible member holding said pawl in looking engagement, anda spring acting upon the valve to normally close it.

4. In a device of the character described, a rotatable vent controllingvalve, a disk secured to said valve, means for securing said diskemploying a fusible member, a second disk mounted concentric with thefirst and free to turn, a spring acting upon the second disk to turn thesame, and means for adjustably connecting said two disks.

5. In a device of the character described,

a rotatable vent controlling valve, a disk se- WILLIAM JOSEPH ROY.JOSEPH BERNARD DANEL.

